The Train Ride to Paradise
by Dementor Ice Cream
Summary: On the train to the afterlife, two characters meet, and discover they have more in common than anyone would suspect. Albus/Gellert, as canon compliant as it can be.


One moment Colin Creevy was fighting alongside his fellow Gryffindors, then he felt a sudden lightness, and when he looked around he seemed to be in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express.

"What--," he began in bewilderment. Then he realized he was naked, and there was a very good-looking boy sitting next to him, who had beautiful blond hair and a mischievous look in his eyes. The boy was wearing old-fashioned robes. Colin wished desperately that he was dressed, and suddenly he was wearing the same muggle clothes he had been wearing a minute ago, though much cleaner than they had been after months of living in the Room of Requirement.

"Don't worry," said the blond boy, smiling. "You died, and this is the train to the afterlife. I have to admit, I'm rather excited to see what we'll find there."

"Huh?" Colin stammered in bewilderment. "How did I die? I was doing just fine, fighting the Death Eaters. They made us leave but I came back to fight, and I wanted to be there for my friends. We were all in the DA together, and we knew how to fight. It's just not fair that some stinky Death Eater got me."

"Why should death be any more fair than life?"

Colin calmed down and looked more closely at the boy. "I haven't see you at Hogwarts," he said.

"I went to Durmstrang."

"You don't have an accent."

"Neither do you, and it sounds to me like you're speaking perfect German."

"Wicked. So how did you die?"

"Voldemort killed me."

"He's killing Durmstrang students too?"

"Who said I was a student? When we die, we can look any age we want. I guess this is just how I picture myself, but when I died I was much older."

"How old?" asked Colin in surprise.

"Not sure," said the boy cheerfully. "I was insane for most of it. Nice to not be that way anymore. How old were you?"

"I'm sixteen," said Colin. "It was supposed to be my sixth year at Hogwarts, but with Death Eaters running the school I couldn't exactly attend class, since I'm Muggleborn."

"I remember being sixteen," said the blond boy wistfully. "That was the last time anyone really loved me."

"A girl?" asked Colin.

The blond smirked. "A boy." He looked slyly at Colin, who grinned.

"You're gay? Me too. I'm Colin, by the way."

"I'm Gellert. And gay? Am I happy? What are you babbling about?"

"Wow, you're really old. Gay means homosexual."

"That's silly."

"So... Gellert, who was this guy you were in love with?"

"He was amazing. We had so much in common, and we really understood each other. He was the only person I felt like I could just talk to for hours and never run out of things to say."

Colin looked wistful. "Sounds wonderful. He really loved you?"

"Really. More than I deserved, though. I was kind of a prat," (Colin knew he hadn't really used that word, but something that meant the same thing) "and I messed things up badly. I ... accidentally killed his sister, and I knew he could never forgive me, so I left and didn't see him again for almost fifty years, when he had me put in prison."

"That's horrible. Damn, I was wishing that story had a happy ending. Of course, I've had a crush on the same guy for five years, and he' s totally straight, so I can't really complain."

"Five years? Since you were ... eleven?"

"Yeah, silly isn't it. But he's a hero, and when I first met him it was a hero-worship thing, but then I got my first erection thinking about him and realized it was more than that."

"So we have something else in common," Gellert's blue eyes were twinkling. "We both fell in love with heroes."

Colin looked at him skeptically. "Well, _my_ crush is Harry Potter. He's not just any hero, he's the hero of the entire Wizarding World. He's going to defeat Voldemort. Probably has by now."

"Yes, well when Albus defeated me I was the most feared Dark Wizard alive, so I think he counts as a pretty big hero too."

Colin gaped. "Albus _Dumbledore_? You were ... _in love_ with _Professor Dumbledore_?"

"Still am, in fact. I told you I was insane, but he was the only person who ever let me feel normal, like I could connect with the world in any way but wanting to rule it." Gellert looked out the window wistfully. There was a beautiful landscape of dark blue trees and pale yellow sky, with apple-green deer running across lavender grass. He turned back to Colin, who was looking thoughtful.

"So you're the Dark Wizard Grindelwald. I read about you on Dumbledore's chocolate frog card -- that he defeated you in 1945. Have you got something against Muggleborns?" Colin was cautious.

"Oh no. I had many friends whose parents had been muggles. I simply thought wizards were superior and should rule over muggles for their own good. Muggles are pretty ignorant and self-destructive, you know. I didn't tell the Nazis what to believe, I just encouraged them to conquer the world. I was going to step in and take over when the time was right."

Colin looked sick. "You had something to do with the Holocaust?"

"I was insane, remember? I didn't understand the consequences of my actions. I thought if I helped one muggle country gain power I could control it from the sidelines until the world was ready to accept Wizard leadership. Albus knew better, and he stopped me in time for the muggles to settle the war in their own way. I spent the rest of my life in Nurmengard as punishment for my mistakes, and now that I'm dead I can see how wrong I was. I wish there was something I could do to make up for it, but more than anything I just want to see Albus again."

"How long is this train ride?"

There was a loud but musical whistle, and the train stopped at a platform surrounded by lush countryside in unusual but beautiful colors, and people rushed out of the train to greet their loved ones, embracing and exclaiming about their lives. Colin saw one of the Weasley twins being greeted by a bunch of redheads he didn't know, Professor Lupin and a pink-haired woman hugging two men with dark hair, and most surprisingly, Snape being greeted warmly by a brown-haired woman with the same nose, and then by a red-haired woman who was crying.

Colin and his new friend stepped out and looked around. No one came to hug them, so they walked together a little way, pausing on a blue bridge to look at the white and silver trees that grew along a river of gold.

"So is this heaven?" Colin asked.

"As close to it as anyone has come," said a voice behind them, and they turned to see a young man with auburn hair and twinkling blue eyes, who was smiling warmly at Gellert.

"Albus," breathed the young man, whose eyes began to fill with tears. "Can you ever forgive me for everything I've done to you?"

"It's not me you need to apologize to," said Albus Dumbledore, turning to beckon a young blond woman from the crowd.

"Ariana?" said Gellert, staring at her. "You look wonderful."

"But of course, I've recovered from my madness just as you have from yours," said Ariana, smiling. "I have forgiven Albus and I have no anger towards you. Please make my brother happy, will you? Just hug him, and all will be well." She pushed Albus into Gellert's arms and they held each other tightly.

"Congratulations, Professor," said Colin with a grin.

"Thanks, Colin," said Albus, looking briefly like the Headmaster Colin had known. "Well done, by the way. You fought bravely. You should know that Harry defeated Voldemort and lived." Colin nodded, glad that Harry would be happy, and would probably marry Ginny and have a bunch of kids.

Then Albus and Gellert went off hand in hand, staring into each other's eyes, and Colin smiled shyly at Ariana.

"Wow. I wish I could have something like that."

"Well, who says you can't?" said Ariana. "I've met the love of my afterlife here, now why shouldn't you? Come on, I'll take you to the gay men's paradise." She took his hand and flew upward, and he followed, amazed by his weightlessness. Together they flew to the cloud that floated over the land, where he found the great gay bar in the sky, full of beautiful boys dancing in shorts. Heaven indeed.


End file.
